Richards-Communicative-Language pdf

Superlative adjectives

Superlative adjectives usually appear before the noun they modify.

The funniest person I know is my friend Bob.

The most caring individual in our school is the custodian.

They can also occur with the noun they modify

Of all the people in my family, my Aunt Ruth is the kindest.

Of all my professors, Dr. Lopez is the most inspiring.

Superlatives are often followed by relative clauses in the present perfect.

My cousin Anita is the most generous person I’ve ever met.

The closest friend I’ve ever had is someone I met in elementary school.

A  Complete these sentences with your own information, and add more details. 

Then compare with a partner.

 

1. One of the most inspiring people I’ve ever known is …

 

One of the most inspiring people I’ve ever known is my math teacher. She 

 

encourages students to think rather than just memorize formulas and rules.

 

2. The most successful individual I know is …

 

3. Of all the people I know …. is the least self-centered.

 

4. The youngest person who I consider to be a hero is …

 

5. The most moving speaker I have ever heard is …

 

6. The most important role model I’ve ever had is …

 

7. Of all the friends I’ve ever had …. is the most understanding.

 

8. One of the bravest things I’ve eve done is …

B  Use the superlative form of these adjectives to describe people you know. Write at 

     least five sentences.

 

brave    honest    interesting     smart    generous   inspiring    kind       witty

C  Group work   

     Discuss the sentences your wrote in Exercises A and B. Ask each other follow-up questions.

 

A. My next-door neighbor is the bravest person I’ve ever met.

 

B. What did your neighbor do, exactly?

 

A.  She’s a firefighter, and once she saved a child from a burning building …

If  students  read  and  practice  aloud  the  sentences  in  the  grammar 

box, this constitutes mechanical practice. Exercises A and B can be regarded as 

meaningful practice since students now complete the sentences with their own 

information. Exercise C is an example of communicative practice since it is an 

open-ended discussion activity.

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18  Communicative Language Teaching Today

Task 9

Examine the activities in one unit of a course book. Can 

you find examples of activities that provide mechanical, 

meaningful, and communicative practice? What type of 

activities predominate?

The distinction between mechanical, meaningful, and communicative 

activities  is  similar  to  that  given  by  Littlewood  (1981),  who  groups  activities 

into two kinds: